Pup with broken heart makes miraculous recovery after ‘high-tech’ heart surgery
A four-month-old German Shepherd puppy named Zeus has been saved by specialist vets from ChesterGates animal hospital after he suffered near fatal heart failure.
Owner Mrs Mikayla Ozder, from Telford, became very worried about Zeus. As the weeks progressed he didn’t put on any weight, no matter what food she gave him. He was struggling to climb on the sofa by 16 weeks and would sleep on her all the time, making little grunting noises that she put down to puppy sounds – though his breathing was significantly quicker than it should have been.
Seeing no improvement, Mrs Ozder speedily put Zeus into her car and drove him to her local Haygate Veterinary Centre, where he was diagnosed with a heart murmur. As a result, the local vets recommended that Zeus be quickly taken to the regional ChesterGates specialist animal hospital.
Upon admission, ChesterGates Specialist Animal Cardiologist, Liz Bode examined Zeus carefully using a high-tech ultrasound scanner. She identified that Zeus had life-threatening heart failure, caused by ‘patent ductus arteriosus’. This congenital heart defect, present from birth, is where there is a persistent opening between the two major blood vessels leading from the heart.
Zeus’s condition required urgent action. So the ChesterGates team first worked hard to stabilise the puppy, then prepare him for surgery.
In a high-tech operation, and reducing the risk and recovery of open-chest surgery, Zeus underwent a minimally invasive procedure using ChesterGates cutting-edge Amplatz Canine Duct Occluder and fluoroscopy equipment. Here a tiny ‘intelligent’ self-expanding device, the size of a 5p coin, was inserted into Zeus’s heart using keyhole surgery, to close the ‘patent ductus arteriosus’.
Taking two hours, and involving two specialists, the surgery was a great success. As the procedure was conducted with such acute precision, Zeus was discharged the next day, much to the relief and joy of his family. From this time he has made a remarkable recovery, and within days was back to being a normal puppy.
Mrs Mikayla Ozder said:
“We got Zeus at eight weeks to be my disability support dog. We thought his back end was weak and thought he had hip dysplasia. But at the Haygate vet’s emergency appointment they told me - it’s not his hips it’s his heart!
“He was referred to ChesterGates where they admitted him straight away and diagnosed heart failure. I was heartbroken at the thought of losing him - especially with him being so young.
“The surgery went as well as it could have. They saved his life. He heart is still damaged and he will be on medication for life. But he’s like a different dog since the day we got him home. He’s so full of life and has a great future ahead of him. I don’t know what I would do without him. He’s my best friend.”
Liz Bode said:
“If the procedure had not been performed Zeus would have died within weeks from heart failure. And if open-chest surgery had been performed it would have come with much greater risks and a significantly longer recovery time – which would have included a period of hospitalisation.
“Our ability to offer this minimally invasive procedure means that dogs go home within 24 hours of surgery and only have a tiny incision, which heals much faster. The closure of a patent ductus arteriosus in this way requires specialised facilities and training, which are rarely offered. ChesterGates has extensive experience of this procedures and we are delighted that we can offer this surgery to our clients. I am so pleased that Zeus is doing so well and that he continues to live a normal and happy life with his lovely owners.”
Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Chestergates Veterinary Specialists is a pioneer of UK veterinary neurology - from the development of MRI in veterinary medicine in the nineties, surgical management of syringomyelia[1] in the noughties, vastly increasing knowledge of many neurological diseases in the 2010s, to using advanced techniques such as 3D-printed guides for spinal stabilisation in 2020s.
With state-of-the-art facilities and employing some of Europe’s leading veterinary specialists, Chestergates now offers a wide range of specialist-led services including orthopaedics, cardiology, soft tissue surgery, anaesthesia and analgesia, ophthalmology, internal medicine, diagnostic imaging and neurology and neurosurgery. For more information visit: www.chestergates.org.uk.